The City of Watertown provided the following announcement.
The City of Watertown is excited to announce the release of the Health and Human Services Assessment Final Report!
You can read the report today, which includes an analysis of the existing health and human services available in Watertown, an identification of gaps between needs and services, a series of recommendations made by the experts at Health Management Associates to the City of Watertown, and much more!
You’re also encouraged to stay up to date at the City of Watertown’s website for the next steps of this report in the coming weeks and months!
I’ve taken a look at the report, and I’m disappointed if not surprised. The main recommendation (points one and two) is to create another bureaucracy with a Human Services Director and a Human Services Cabinet. These entities would assume duties and responsibilities already served by the town. Indeed, the “Cabinet” already exists: the Directors of Public Health, Senior Services, Veterans Services, et al, who already report to the City Manager. If you wonder how another Director atop these Directors will serve the town, wonder some more with the later addition of a DEI Director to “establish a comprehensive diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) strategy”.
Some ideas seem rational and concrete: improving the “digital front door” (i.e. website); and expanding the hours of the food pantry. Others seem to be written by consultants anxious to earn their fees. Which I suppose is what Health Management Associates, Inc. is.
I regret that the worthy departments that serve the needs of the community were and will be deprived of additional money that could have gone to their constituents rather than to this report and to additional layers of management. But the revenue from the latest real estate assessment won’t spend itself.
Given the constant complaining about an activity not getting completed or ready per process, more offices are needed. Too many responsibilities under one office is not efficient as it does not create internal economies of scale which is based on the division of labor. If one wants government to run like a business, then the jack of all trades, master of none model needs to end.
A Housing Officer is needed as housing is an aspect of Human Services, like Public Health, Disability, Employment Services etc. Each aspect has its own set of laws and practices. It doesn’t serve residents well if the Senior Service Officer is providing housing solutions to person under 65. The situation in which the Director of Veterans Services has responsibility for acting on behalf of persons with disabilities is problematic. The types of disabilities faced by veterans can be different from that of school aged children or adult onset disabilities, like MS, and discrimination protection for persons with disabilities may not fit neatly under a DEI office or Housing or Public Health.
These are needs based situations, not a litmus test for what one deems worthy or unworthy. DEI or whatever one wants to call the protection of Civil Rights is still needed today, unfortunately. It is, whether one likes it or not, it is an aspect of Human Services. As someone whose Civil Rights are relatively secured, I have no issue with such an office because it does not threaten my identity if some population’s Civil Rights need to be re-affirmed. I suspect a lack of identity or one that rests upon a weak basis, such as proximity to whiteness, is at the root of this backlash against DEI. I cannot allay that fear nor can anyone else, but that fear cannot be given the same amount of attention as the need to secure Civil Rights. If needs are cherrypicked based on reactionary feelings, then a government body cannot serve all. Serve all or don’t serve anyone.
It sounds like you and I agree, Rita. No one person can do the job that several people do now. Best leave Senior Services to the Senior Services Director, Veterans Services to the Veterans Director, etc. Nearing its 400th year, how has Watertown managed to do without a Human Services Director—except that it has? With a stable population, as the report also notes.
Where we seem not to agree is why someone might oppose spending money on management over services. Department Directors in Watertown make anywhere from $70,000 to $100,000 a year. With the creation of two new such positions, seniors, veterans, the hungry, and others who depend on town services will be out anywhere from $150,000 to $200,000 a year, every year. That’s inexcusable.
You and Paul Fahey have suggested that race is involved (if I understand “proximity to whiteness” correctly, which I might not because I’m not sure I do). Such a libelous and illogical leap tells me that you both know I’m right. It’s hard not to follow the herd in Watertown. But you see things more clearly from the different perspective. Best wishes for the holidays.
Interesting pivot from streamlining the health and human services structure to bashing DEI. MAGA is nothing if not consistent. MAGA=MAWA!
Not MAGA, Not MAWA. But yes, consistent. Neither proposed position puts one penny into circulation; just the opposite. I’d like people to get the help they need. I’m not sorry for that, and you can spare us all your childish taunts. But I wish you a very happy holiday season. The lights around town look wonderful.
Sorry that it’s so confusing to you. The goal of government isn’t to make profits; it’s to provide services to the residents of the community. Not surprising that this is unclear given the upcoming takeover by billionaires. I’m sure President Musk will implement policies to help average Americans as you all believe MAGA will do. After all, he is Donald Trump’s model African-American.
There you go again, agreeing with me: “provide services to the residents of the community”. Preach, Brother Paul. To which two managerial positions contribute nothing except another layer of bureaucracy and from which they take a lot of money to pay for those services. We’d make a great team. I’ll overlook the sillier parts of your comment out of seasonal good cheer.
Josh:
Please remember that some severe TDS sufferers will exhibit signs of the disease to include, but not limited to, childish pontification, extreme aversion to loosing, particularly with anything political, and hostility to anyone who has ample financial means and power – unless they are Democrats.
Maybe you guys should consider toning down the rhetoric a little, especially in this Holiday Season. Calling your neighbors deranged is not a particularly good look and will win you no respect.
The business about lies and “childish pontifications is nothing but overheated rhetoric.
I’ll leave it at that. Peace on earth. Let’s see if we can find some good will.
Perspective is a misunderstood concept. People fail to realize the plurality that is inherently imbeded in the term. I know I don’t speak for all residents, and i am not looking to find commonality or valudation when I do speak. And that’s OK. I share my perspective because the status quo is just another perspective.
Perspective, though does not exclude, objective truths. Racism exists and programs/remedies are needed to address it. The opposition to DEI programs or any such programs just reinforces the existence of racism. Opposition fails to point to hard statistical analys to prove otherwise. It always retreats to arbitrary positions that only attempt to solidfy its authority, ending any logical footing. The test never fails.
Personally, I prefer people calling out racists and Nazis but that is no longer the program du jour because it is too threatening.
As for what is needed in terms of other services, the failure to see nuances regarding needs is a way to prioritze needs. Subsuming the needs for housing or disability under one sizes fits all makes those needs invisible, and therefore dismissable. If money is the concern then there are many areas in the budget that could be adjusted. Budgets are a proxy for what is valued and what is not. Again, another test that never fails to reveal what is being said vs. what is really wanted.
In end, I want the city to know there are different perspectives on this report and there are facts that can’t be ignored regardless of perspectives. There is a lot to weigh here and some unpopular choices to make.
Doing the right thing requires much.
I don’t expect much of anyone in Watertown (which voted for Biden/Harris 77%-23% over Trump/Vance, far more than the Mass average) to agree with me. But as the media is finally fessing up to their years of lies, it’s worth some “childish pontifications” (check) and “hostility” (check) to warn people BEFORE they make costly, misguided decisions. I do expect them to make those costly, misguided decisions in spite of my warning—they’ve bought every Big Lie so far—but a voice crying out in the wilderness still makes a sound… or does it?
Merry Christmas and Happy Hanukkah to all. And Happy New Year.
Merry Christmas, Josh. And a prosperous New Year – now that we stand a chance for it.
My New Years wish is to see your comments when things don’t magically change on January 20th…or anytime after. You had the first term to learn this and you didn’t. Guess one bad term deserves another. Happy Holidays!!!! All of them!
Here, here, Joe. Peace on earth and goodwill toward all.
About “toning down the rhetoric”.
“Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), who will lose control of the Senate agenda next year as a result of Republicans’ string of victories on election night, urged his GOP colleagues to embrace bipartisanship next year to get things done.”
So now is the time to be nice? How about being called fascists, nazis, garbage, irredeemables, arsonists, anarchists, etc. for years by Democrats, more stridently while they held power. Let’s be real here.
Joe was talking about the rhetoric on this page. Sorry if you were confused. And nice trying to blame the Dems for this. Do you really want to go toe to toe on the endless garbage from Trump and MAGA? Come on!